


That's the Thing About Trust

by MyceliumMythos



Category: Stormlight Archive - Brandon Sanderson
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-26
Updated: 2015-09-26
Packaged: 2018-04-23 09:57:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4872463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyceliumMythos/pseuds/MyceliumMythos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Moash comes to visit Kaladin during the Weeping, delivering not the king's message, but one of his own.  Rewrite/divergence from a scene in chapter 77 of "Words of Radiance."</p>
            </blockquote>





	That's the Thing About Trust

Many things had occurred in the past year which Moash could once only have dreamed of.  He had been released from the poverty and slavery which had broken the souls and bodies of thousands of other bridgemen.  He had become a Shardbearer, a feat unheard of in darkeyes for centuries past.  And through all those other miraculous occurrences combined, he had been put in a position to slay King Elhokar, the most dangerous tyrant in the world and the man who had killed his family.

But of all the things he could have imagined, perhaps the one thing he could never have imagined _possible_ was Kaladin Stormblessed sleeping, or apparently _not_ sleeping, through darkness in the middle of the day, tucked away beneath multiple blankets like a beggar bracing himself in a cold wind.

Of course, Moash could never see Kaladin as a simple beggar.  Although his disdain for the man had been great when they first met, seeing him as just another fool who was going to fail, Kaladin had proven time and time again he was more than that.  He was more than _any_ man.  Kaladin was like a Ryshadium among chulls.  He was like a highstorm among the gentle rain of the Weeping.  He was like the sun rising at midnight, sheering away the greatest darkness with the light he cast.  He was the person Moash respected and loved above all others, and when Kaladin asked why he was even there, he could only tell him the truth.

“I just wanted to check on you,” Moash said and then, after hesitating, added, “I was worried about you.  You don’t seem well.”

“You don’t need to worry about me,” Kaladin said.  “It’s just the Weeping.  It doesn’t agree with me.”

There was more than his morose behavior to make him worry.  Based on what Lopen had said, it seemed that Kal had lost his abilities.  Moash tried to console himself at least by attributing one to the other.  After all, if someone took his plate and blade, he might be tempted to hide inside as well.

 However, Moash knew that if something so great was taken from him, Kaladin would fight tooth and nail to return it to him.  And now that he held such great power, Moash would do the same for him.  He couldn’t dispel the gloom and rains of the Weeping, and he didn’t think he could return Kal’s powers to him, but with the tools Kaladin had given him, he could do something even greater for the man.

Moash was going to kill the king.  Dalinar was going to take over and change the kingdom.  Kaladin was going to get back on his feet and help their Brightlord see Alethkar into a new era.  And Moash was going to be right by his side…

Always by his side…

“Everything’s going to change soon, Kal,” Moash said, partly to Kaladin, partly as reassurance to himself.  “Dalinar will be king, and we’ll be free from tyrants.  And if anyone tries to take that from us, we’ll show ‘em how Bridge Four deals with uppity lighteyes.”

“Sometimes lives must be spent for the greater good,” Kaladin said.

Moash’s tan eyes lit up.  “Yes, exactly!”  For all he worried about the changes in Kaladin, he was glad that the man had finally begun to agree with him on such points.  He understood now that there was no honor in protecting corrupt lighteyes.

“I swear, things will be better,” Moash said, even more to himself.  And then, because he was already living in a land of unimaginable fantasy, Moash allowed himself to do one other thing he had only dreamed of. 

Crossing the room in a few quick strides, Moash stopped at Kaladin’s bedside.  He didn’t look up, even when Moash rested a Shardplate-gloved hand as gently as he could on his arm.  His former bridgeleader seemed almost entirely unaware, but Moash wasn’t bothered.  He knew Kal would be back to himself someday.  Might as well start their better world in the meantime.

Moash leaned down and kissed him.  He did it slowly, and with the upmost care.  For all his armor, he only felt terrified for a moment.  Terrified that Kal might reject him.  Terrified that he might lose the most important relationship in his life.  Terrified that even if Kaladin might be able to return what Moash felt for him, that this entire world might collapse and reveal itself to be no more than a fever dream or a mad delusion.

But the kiss passed, and when Moash pulled away, he and Kaladin were still there, nothing ruined, both as real as the gentle patter of rain on the roof over their head.

He wasn’t sure how real all this must seem to Kaladin, however.  It was hard to gage his reaction in the darkness, especially with his hair as long as it was, covering his eyes.  He thought the man looked up at him just for a moment, just with the briefest look of…what was that?  Disbelief?  What was that disbelief over?  But just after that moment, his eyes turned down again and he sat quietly, leaving Moash in the dark.

It stung, admittedly, but Moash was able to reassure himself that this wasn’t the end of all things.  He had acted on what he felt, and it had only felt right to him. In the future, he could do more.  He could do better, act more boldly, be more honest with what he felt and perhaps…Kaladin might do the same.

Moash’s hand trailed up over Kal’s arm, his shoulder, and even briefly his neck.  Then, he turned and began to stride away.  “You heal up, all right?” he called back.  Although he hated to leave Kaladin alone in the darkness again, Moash knew he had to leave.  There was a lot to do until they could kill the king, but there was a brighter future waiting on the other side of that day—a brighter future for the two of them together.  Moash stepped out of his room and into the light.

**Author's Note:**

> This version of the scene's basically been floating around in my head since I read the original. Just had to put it out there. I'm a sucker for loyalty-based pairings...


End file.
